Sunday 4 October 2015

Film Review - Minions




Three’s Company

Film: Minions
Voices of: Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Saunders, Pierre Coffin
Directed by: Kyle Balda, Pierre Coffin
Duration: 1 hr 35 mins
Rating: * * * 1 / 2

Co-director Pierre Coffin gave us the two eminently likable films, Despicable Me I and II and Minions is a spin off of those two films involving characters that we were introduced to earlier. It may not have the depth and emotions of its predecessors, but as far as the entertainment quotient is concerned the Minions score highly, once again.

If the X-Men can have an origins story then so can the Minions. We are told about how they evolved over a period of time, right from the dinosaurs, cavemen to modern day human beings. But they’ve always had a need for a ‘boss’ and evil one, to guide them. In the late 60’s, 1968 to be precise three Minions led by Kevin along with Bob and Stuart are on the look out for a new leader- they land in New York and head straight for Orlando where all the evil characters from around the world have gathered. Scarlett Overkill (Voice of Sandra Bullock) an evil super woman is the most sought after and with a quirk of fate, they become her henchmen.

It turns out, she is more evil than they envisaged and she gives them an assignment of stealing the crown of the Queen of England. That is quite an adventurous task that they have on their hand leading to a lot of fun moments.
  
Minions works because there is enough slapstick comedy to entertain the kids and lots of cultural references to keep the adults amused. The emotions maybe a little less but the laughs are few more. The central characters help the film sail through, they are clumsy and silly but in a smart way. The film makers have taken a huge risk with the fact that the Minions speak only a few English words (Banana and Boss being the most distinct) the rest sounds like mumbling but yet they manage to pull it off. The pace rarely slackens, the gags are non stop and there are references to Dracula, Napolean and even the Beatles crossing Abbey Road .

The quality of animation in most films has reached a certain standard now and there is it difficult for a film to stand out on that count. But as Inside Out proved a couple of weeks back, superior story telling is making a comeback of sorts in animation films. All in all, Minions is thoroughly enjoyable venture.  


Published in The Navhind Times on 12th July 2015


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